View source for Fiat 2300

{{Infobox automobile
| name         = Fiat 2300
| image        = Fiat 2300.JPG
| caption      = Fiat 2300 saloon
| manufacturer = [[Fiat]]
| production   = 1961–1968
| designer     = ''Saloon:'' [[Pininfarina]]<br />''Coupé:'' [[Sergio Sartorelli]] at [[Ghia]]
| class        = [[Executive car]]
| layout       = [[Front-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout|Front-engine, rear-wheel-drive]]
| body_style   = 4-door [[Sedan (car)|saloon]]<br />2-door [[coupé]]<br />5-door [[Station wagon|estate]]
| related      = [[Fiat 1800/2100|Fiat 1800 and 2100]]
| engine       = 2.3&nbsp;L [[Straight-six engine|I6]] ([[Petrol engine|petrol]])
| transmission = 4 speed [[Manual transmission|manual]]<br />3-speed ''[[Borg Warner]]'' [[Automatic transmission|automatic]]<ref name="Motor1966">{{cite journal |title=Car-by-car guide: Fiat 2300 and 2300S |journal=[[The Motor (magazine)|Motor]] |page=19 |date=22 October 1966}}</ref>
| wheelbase    = {{convert|2650|mm|in|1|abbr=on}}<br>''Speciale:'' {{convert|2730|mm|in|1|abbr=on}}
| length       = {{convert|4485|mm|in|1|abbr=on}}
| width        = {{convert|1620|mm|in|1|abbr=on}}
| height       = {{convert|1470|mm|in|1|abbr=on}}
| weight       = {{convert|1285|–|1345|kg|lb|0|abbr=on}}
| predecessor  = [[Fiat 2100]]
| successor    = [[Fiat 130]]
| sp = uk
}}
The '''Fiat 2300''' is a [[Straight-six engine|six-cylinder]] [[executive car]] which was produced by [[Italy|Italian]] [[automotive]] manufacturer [[Fiat]] between 1961 and 1968. The 2300 was made as [[Sedan (car)|saloon]] (styled by [[Dante Giacosa]]), [[Station wagon|estate car]] and [[coupé]]. The 2300 saloon is noteworthy as in 1966 it became the first Fiat model to be available with an [[automatic transmission]].
==2300 Coupé==
Alongside saloon and estate models the 2300 range included [[Ghia]]-designed [[grand tourer]]s, the '''Fiat 2300 Coupé''' and '''2300S Coupé'''—the latter fitted with a more powerful engine with double twin-choke carburettors, tuned by [[Abarth]]. The shape of the car was first seen in public when Ghia presented it as a prototype sports coupé at the [[Turin Motor Show#1960|1960 Turin Motor Show]].<ref name="Autocar197004">{{cite journal |first=Peter |last=Garnier |title=Used car test: Fiat 2300S Coupe |journal=[[Autocar (magazine)|Autocar]] |volume=132 |number=3869 |pages=24–26 |date=9 April 1970}}</ref> A production version, based on the newly launched Fiat 2300 saloon was presented in 1961 and went on general sale in 1962.<ref name="Autocar197004" /> Having developed the coupé body, Ghia lacked the production capacity needed for the volumes envisaged, and were obliged to subcontract its production to [[Officine Stampaggi Industriali|OSI]].<ref name="AutoMotoruSport2010">{{cite journal |title=Nachtschicht im Schloss: A report on a concours d'elegance at Schloss Bensberg |first=Bernd |last=Ostmann |journal=[[Auto, Motor und Sport]] |number=25 |volume=2010 |page=40 |date=18 November 2010}}</ref>
The coupé body was welded to the standard floor platform of the 2300 saloon with which it shared its core components. (Despite being a new model, the 2300 saloon was in most respects a well-proven design, being a larger engined version of the Fiat 2100 that had been available since 1959.) The wheelbase was identical, but the coupé had a slightly wider track at both ends than the saloon, and final drive gearing for the coupé was increased to 3.9 (3.72 for the 2300S coupé) which translated to 20.9&nbsp;mph (33.6&nbsp;km/h) per 1,000&nbsp;rpm.<ref name="Autocar197004" /> Inside the 2300 Coupé featured power operated windows and other luxury fittings.
==Specifications==
The Fiat 2300 used [[unibody]] construction. Front suspension was by [[double wishbone]]s, sprung by [[torsion bar]]s, with hydraulic [[Shock absorber|dampers]] and an [[anti-roll bar]]; at the rear there was a [[solid axle]] with [[leaf spring]]s, hydraulic dampers and an anti-roll bar.
The brakes were servo-assisted [[Disc brake|discs]] on all four corners.
On most 2300s and all 2300S coupés the transmission was an all-[[synchromesh]] 4-speed [[Manual transmission|manual]], with optional [[Overdrive (mechanics)|overdrive]]. A [[Saxomat]] automated clutch was available as optional extra; from 1966 a [[Borg Warner]] 3-speed [[Automatic transmission|automatic]] was offered in its place.
The [[overhead valve]] [[straight-six engine]] had a cast iron [[Engine block|block]] and an aluminium [[cylinder head]]. While the 2300 engine was fitted with a single twin-choke downdraught [[carburettor]], the more powerful 2300S used two twin-choke horizontal carburettors.
{|class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size:90%"
!Model!!Years!!Engine!!Displacement<br />Bore&thinsp;x&thinsp;stroke!!Power!!Fuel system
|-
| '''2300''' || 1961–1968 || rowspan="2" | [[Straight-six engine|I6]] [[Overhead valve engine|OHV]] ||rowspan=2| {{convert|2279|cc|cuin|0|abbr=on}}<br />{{convert|78|x|79.5|mm|1|abbr=on}} || {{cvt|105|hp-metric|kW bhp|0|adj=mid|[[Horsepower#CUNA|CUNA]]}}<br>{{cvt|117|hp-metric|kW bhp|0|adj=mid|[[SAE International|SAE]]}} || Twin-choke carburettor
|-
| '''2300 S''' || 1963–1968 || {{cvt|136|hp-metric|kW bhp|0|adj=mid|[[Horsepower#CUNA|CUNA]]}}<br>{{cvt|150|hp-metric|kW bhp|0|adj=mid|[[SAE International|SAE]]}} || Two twin-choke carburettors
|}
<gallery widths="200px" heights="150px">
File:Fiat 2300.jpg|Fiat 2300 Saloon
File:Fiat 2300 estate ca 1968.jpg|Fiat 2300 Estate in UK (1967)
File:Fiat 2300-S-Coupé.JPG|Fiat 2300 S Coupé
File:2300 hafen.jpg|Fiat 2300 S Coupé (Series 3)
File:Fiat 2300 2.jpg|Detail of the driver's seat of the saloon
</gallery>
=={{anchor|Moretti|Savio|Michelotti}} Derivatives and coachbuilt versions==
[[File:1962 Moretti 2500 SS Coupé side.jpg|thumb|A 1962 Moretti 2500 SS Coupé]]
As Fiat's flagship model, the 2300 was the subject of numerous special bodies by Italy's many [[coachbuilder]]s. As they had with the 2100, [[Carrozzeria Francis Lombardi]] offered a seven-seater representational limousine based on the 2300. [[Sergio Sartorelli]] of Ghia designed the 2300 Coupé, of which Ghia also developed convertible and a more spacious, fastback-styled shooting brake derivative called the Club.<ref name=QRFS442>{{citation | title = Le vedremo al Salone di Torino | trans-title = We will see them at the Turin Auto Show | language = it | volume = 4: 1962-1963 | pages = 42–43 | date = November 1962 | publication-date = May 2013 | journal = Galleria Ruoteclassiche | series = Le fuoriserie 1956-1970. Il meglio di Quattroruote | number = 57 | isbn = 9788872127704 | publisher = Editoriale Domus S.p.A. }}</ref> Three convertibles and two Clubs were built.<ref name=Carrzz3>{{cite web | url = https://www.carrozzieri-italiani.com/listing/fiat-2300-s-cabriolet-ghia/ | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20221123102334/https://www.carrozzieri-italiani.com/listing/fiat-2300-s-cabriolet-ghia/ | archive-date = 2022-11-23 | title = Fiat 2300 S Cabriolet Ghia | work = Carrozzieri-italiani.com }}</ref><ref name=Carrzz2>{{cite web | url = https://www.carrozzieri-italiani.com/listing/fiat-2300-s-club-ghia/ | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20221123113849/https://www.carrozzieri-italiani.com/listing/fiat-2300-s-club-ghia/ | archive-date = 2022-11-23 | title = Fiat 2300 S Club Ghia | work = Carrozzieri-italiani.com }}</ref> Several other ''carrozzieri'' also tried their hand at making a [[Grand tourer|gran turismo]] out of the 2300, with [[Giovanni Michelotti]] being responsible for at least four designs:
[[Moretti Motor Company|Moretti]] developed the 2500&nbsp;SS, a 2.5-liter version with in-house bodywork designed by [[Giovanni Michelotti]], available as a coupé or a convertible.<ref name=GMlist>{{citation | url = http://www.archiviostoricomichelotti.it/elenco-vetture | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20221203161917/http://www.archiviostoricomichelotti.it/elenco-vetture | archive-date = 2022-12-03 | title = Elenco delle Vetture progettate da Giovanni Michelotti conosciute al momento | trans-title = List of cars currently known to have been designed by Giovanni Michelotti | work = Archivio Storico Michelotti | language = it | location = Turin, Italy }}</ref> The 2500&nbsp;SS' engine was bored out by three millimetres; the resulting bore and stroke are {{cvt|81.0x79.5|mm|in|2}} for a displacement of 2458&nbsp;cc. It was tuned and fitted with twin double carburetors as well and produces {{cvt|170|hp-metric|kW|0}} at 5800&nbsp;rpm.<ref name=BB12>{{cite web | url = https://silodrome.com/moretti-2500-ss-coupe/ | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20201112025302/https://silodrome.com/moretti-2500-ss-coupe/ | archive-date = 2020-11-12 | title = 1962 Moretti 2500 SS Coupe | first = Ben | last = Branch | work = Silodrome | date = 2012-05-31 }}</ref> The buyer could also opt to fit the car with the regular 2300&nbsp;S engine, in which case the car was called the Moretti 2300&nbsp;S.<ref name=MCH2300>{{cite web | url = https://motor-car.net/fiat/item/25059-fiat-2300-coupe | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20201027054927/https://motor-car.net/fiat/item/25059-fiat-2300-coupe | archive-date = 2020-10-27 | work = Motor Car History | title = Fiat 2300 Coupe history from 1961 to 1969 }}</ref> The Moretti 2300 was not significantly more expensive than the Ghia-bodied Coupé, but sales remained small.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.classicandsportscar.com/features/why-charming-moretti-2300s-leaves-us-wanting-more | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20201220165116/https://www.classicandsportscar.com/features/why-charming-moretti-2300s-leaves-us-wanting-more | archive-date = 2020-12-20 | title = Why this charming Moretti 2300S leaves us wanting more | first = Richard | last = Heseltine | date = 2020-12-18 | work = [[Classic & Sports Car]] | publisher = Haymarket Media Group }}</ref> About 20 examples of all varieties of the large Moretti were built, beginning in 1962.
Small coachbuilders {{ill|Carrozzeria Savio|it|Carrozzeria Savio|de|Carrozzeria Savio|fr|Carrozzeria Savio}} showed a rather formal looking, "transatlantic" coupé with rectangular headlights in 1963, designed by Giovanni Michelotti.<ref name=Astebolaffi>{{cite web | url = https://www.astebolaffi.it/en/lot/103/40/detail | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230528043848/https://www.astebolaffi.it/en/lot/103/40/detail | archive-date = 2023-05-28 | title = Lot 40 / 56: FIAT 2300 Coupé Savio 1963 | work = Aste Bolaffi }}</ref> Four examples were built, all with more or less significant design differences - one car has scalloped sides, head and taillight treatments differ, etcetera.
At the [[Geneva Motor Show#1966|1966 Geneva Motor Show]], Michelotti presented his own proposal to replace the Ghia coupé, but this remained a one-off.<ref name=Carrzz>{{cite web | url = https://www.carrozzieri-italiani.com/listing/fiat-2300-coupe-michelotti/ | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230213051138/https://www.carrozzieri-italiani.com/listing/fiat-2300-coupe-michelotti/ | archive-date = 2023-02-13 | title = Fiat 2300 Coupé Michelotti | work = Carrozzieri-italiani.com }}</ref>
{{clear}}
==={{anchor|Abarth|2400}} Abarth 2400===
[[File:Rétromobile 2018 - Fiat Abarth 2400 Allemano-coupé - 1965 - 002.jpg|thumb|Chassis 001, the original, Allemano-designed Abarth 2400 proposal]]
[[File:Abarth 2400 Coupé (27121540108).jpg|thumb|Abarth's private 2400 Coupé; mixed Allemano/Ellena design. This car was the one displayed at Geneva in 1964.]]
Since late 1959, Abarth had offered a series of aluminium-bodied 2+2 coupés and convertibles based on the 2100, called the [[Abarth 2200]]. When the 2300 appeared, Abarth continued this tradition, although there was no longer a convertible on offer. Stroking the 2200's engine created a [[Stroke ratio|square engine]] with dimensions of {{cvt|79x79|mm|in|2}} and a displacement of 2323&nbsp;cc. As with the earlier 2200, it has a four-speed, floor-shifted transmission, while the engine received Abarth's own cylinder head with a higher (9.5:1) compression ratio, triple Weber 38&nbsp;DCOE carburetors and redesigned manifolds, and the typical, twin-tipped Abarth exhaust system. Claimed power increased to {{cvt|142|hp-metric|kW|0}} at 5800&nbsp;rpm; enough for the car to break the {{cvt|200|km/h|mph|round=5}} barrier. The four-wheel disc brakes were changed to Girling units from the earlier Dunlop ones.<ref name=GG22>{{cite magazine | magazine = Hemmings Motor News | first = Gérald | last = Guétat | title = The Fiat-based, Michelotti-styled Abarth 2400 Coupé Allemano was Carlo Abarth's magnum opus | url = https://www.hemmings.com/stories/2022/08/25/the-fiat-based-michelotti-styled-abarth-2400-coupe-allemano-was-carlo-abarths-magnum-opus | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20221208204525/https://www.hemmings.com/stories/2022/08/25/the-fiat-based-michelotti-styled-abarth-2400-coupe-allemano-was-carlo-abarths-magnum-opus | archive-date = 2022-12-08 | date = 2022-08-05 | publisher = American City Business Journals }}</ref>
For the [[Turin Auto Show]] in November 1961, Abarth had {{ill|Carrozzeria Ellena|de|Carrozzeria Ellena|nl|Carrozzeria Ellena}} and Allemano create two separate designs. The Allemano design (chassis 001) received bodywork clearly derived from their earlier 2200 Coupé, designed by [[Giovanni Michelotti]] and executed by [[Carrozzeria Allemano|Allemano]]. The original's single-piece vertical taillights were replaced with smaller round lamps mounted in a chrome panel, while the rear of the car and the greenhouse were more squared off than those of the predecessor. Ellena made a new design based on their earlier design applied to a few 2200s, with an oval grille, round wheel wells, no quarter glass, and a wraparound rear windshield. Abarth, however, was displeased with both of the proposed designs and further dismayed at the appearance of the new, Ghia-bodied Fiat 2300 Coupé at the same show. Costing a third less, Fiat's own model (albeit much heavier and with less power) undermined the case for the 2400. Abarth, always deeply involved with this car (he used a 2200 and then a 2400 as his personal transport until his death), decided to combine Allemano's front treatment with Ellena's rear, and so the production model has Allemano's more rectangular front and middle section and Ellena's vertical taillights. "Production", however, is a relative term: most sources state that 12 were built, while others say fewer than 10 examples.<ref name=GG22/><ref name=drivemy>{{cite web | url = https://drive-my.com/1962-abarth-2400-coupe-allemano/ | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20221208091845/https://drive-my.com/1962-abarth-2400-coupe-allemano/ | archive-date = 2022-12-08 | first = Chris | last = Rees | title = 1962 Abarth 2400 Coupé Allemano | date = 2020-01-04 | work = Drive-MY }}</ref> By 1963 the 2400 had disappeared from Abarth's price lists, but the story was not yet fully ended: When Abarth realized that Fiat would not premiere their new [[Fiat 850|850]] until two months after the [[Geneva Motor Show#1964|1964 Geneva Salon]] he had to withdraw his new [[Fiat 850#Abarth|Fiat-Abarth OT&nbsp;850]] derivative. As a place holder, he put his personal 2400 on the company stand even though the model had already been long discontinued.<ref name=drivemy/><ref name=HF1164>{{citation | type = pamphlet | work = Abarth Collection | title = Una proficua ricerca d'eleganza | trans-title = A fruitful pursuit of elegance | language = it | number = 8 | date = 2008 | publisher = Hachette-Fascicoli | via = Berni Motori | url = http://www.bernimotori.com/abarth_allemano_coupe_en.html | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230524060135/http://www.bernimotori.com/images/cars/allemano_coupe/HACH%2008-4.jpg | archive-date = 2023-05-24 | page = 6 }}</ref>
Only about forty examples of the 2200 and 2400 were built, all told, and the attempt to establish Abarth as a full fledged manufacturer of grand touring machines may be considered a failure. However, Fiat had Abarth develop the more powerful 2300&nbsp;S engine and gave them several lucrative manufacturing contracts for the 2300&nbsp;S (for the finned aluminium oil crankcase and some gearbox components).<ref name=GG22/> Abarth also received an exclusive contract for putting each 2300&nbsp;S Coupé through a {{cvt|200|km|mi|round=5}} pre-delivery test drive, meaning that Abarth was able to recoup most of their investment in the 2200/2400.<ref name=HF1164/> After the 2400, Abarth renewed their focus on their core businesses: small sporting cars, competition, and selling tuning parts for Fiats and others.
{{clear}}
===Ghia G230S===
[[Carrozzeria Ghia]]'s [[Sergio Sartorelli]] also developed a stylish coupé on 2300-basis, first shown at Turin in November 1963. The G230&nbsp;S has a rakish front with low mounted twin headlights, developing a theme already seen on earlier cars like the [[Dual-Ghia]], and a [[kammback]] rear with a large hatch and three-piece rear windshield. Unlike the Ghia-bodied official Fiat 2300 Coupé, the two-seater G230S was built on a tubular spaceframe designed and built by Gilco. Only two examples were built, plus two convertibles, but this car also served as inspiration for the better known [[Carrozzeria Ghia#450SS|Ghia 450&nbsp;SS]].
<gallery widths=200 heights=135>
File:Ghia-Fiat G230S 1963 green vl TCE.jpg|Ghia-Fiat G230&nbsp;S, based on Fiat 2300 S
File:Ghia-Fiat G230S Heck.JPG|Rear view
</gallery>
==References==
{{Reflist}}
==Further reading==
*Fiat Personenwagen, by Fred Steiningen, 1994. {{ISBN|3-923448-37-6}}
{{Fiat}}
{{Early European Fiat vehicles}}
[[Category:Fiat vehicles|2300]]
[[Category:Cars introduced in 1961]]
[[Category:Flagship vehicles]]
[[Category:Rear-wheel-drive vehicles]]
[[Category:Sedans]]
[[Category:Station wagons]]
[[Category:Coupés]]
[[Category:Cars discontinued in 1968]]